Conservative dentistry is one of the most important areas as all treatments directed at the preservation of teeth belong here.
Conservative dentistry treatments include fillings, aesthetic and root canal treatments.
Dental enamel
Tooth enamel is the hardest and most highly mineralized substance in the human body. Enamel, along with dentin, cementum, and dental pulp is one of the four major tissues that make up the tooth. It is the visible surface of a tooth supported by underlying dentin. Enamel is 96% inorganic mineral, with water and organic material composing the rest. Since enamel is translucent, the colour of dentin and any material placed there (fillings) strongly affects the colour of the enamel. The colour of enamel varies from light yellow to greyish white. Its thickness varies on the whole surface of the tooth. It is usually thickest at the biting surface (up to 2.5 mm), and becomes increasingly thinner towards the gum until it reaches the border between the enamel and the cementum..
For fillings , the dentist removes the decayed part of the tooth. Local anaesthetic is used of course. After this a special bonding agent is used, then the filling material is added. A light is shone on this to make it harden. This material is called tooth-coloured photo-polymerised composite. Their advantage is their perfect aesthetics; not only the tooth, its beauty is also preserved. This technique has replaced amalgam fillings that have not been used for a long time. These photo-polymerised fillings have perfect marginal integrity and can be drilled to have lifelike grooves.
Root canal treatment is also a conservative treatment that is just as important as filling teeth. With its help teeth can be retained for a longer time. It is necessary if the decay is so deep that it reaches the root canal. This may cause serious inflammation, pain and necrosis of the tooth. The root canal may also open up as a result of a strong blow to the tooth, or during preparation for a crown. A part of the tooth may also break down in a way that the root canal gets damaged.
For root canal treatment the dentist drills a hole in the tooth, cleans out the root canals and closes them tightly with root filling. Usually one to three treatments are required for the perfect result. Root fillings are done manually or mechanically.
Direct veneers or ceramic veneers also help tooth conservation, but they are more frequent in aesthetic dentistry. This option is used for front teeth, where a thin porcelain plate is attached to the outside with an adhesive. With it the original colour of the tooth can be restored, differences can be corrected and the gaps between teeth concealed. With this method our patients can regain their perfect smile in a relatively short time.